Tales of the Bounty Hunters: Darkness
Darkness is the first installment in the Gigas Magna storyline's Tales of the Bounty Hunters series, taking place during the events of the Bounty Hunter Wars. Story I, Zirahk, am writing this from the safety of my quarters in the Bounty Hunters' Guild. A few days ago, my story began. You see, previously, I had been working for the Brotherhood of Makuta. But their brutal tactics, vicious ways and hidden motives prompted me to leave. And the final straw came, when I was to be deactivated for a thousand years for some "master plan" they had, that was it. I ran away... and it didn't go well. Zirahk sprinted away as fast as he could. Behind him, Antroz and Bitil, two vicious Makuta, were in the air in hot pursuit. Zirahk folded his feet together in front of him and began to fly, his mechanic propulsion systems kicking in. Behind him, blasts of shadow escaped the confines of the Makuta's hands and sailed towards Zirahk. ''Dodging, Zirahk sent blasts of heat vision back at his opponents, hitting Bitil in the wings and making him spiral into the ground. He sent another blast at Antroz, but the red Makuta spiraled in the air away from the lancing light, sending another blast of shadow in front of Zirahk. The explosion in front of him forced him to deactivate his flying powers and turn to face Antroz, who had already landed in front of him. Without exchanging any words, Zirahk whipped out his spear and Antroz unsheathed his blades, and they dueled, constantly ducking and dodging. From time to time, Zirahk would try to incinerate Antroz's armor, whereas Antroz would try to send him flying back with an accurate blast of shadow. "Traitor!" Antroz bellowed, and landed a skilled blow in Zirahk's stomach, making him tumble back. Bitil jumped into the rocky clearing and bared his teeth. Where was his ride? Zirahk thought. He'd told a group of sailors to meet him here. Antroz and Bitil circled him until Zirahk saw Antroz nod at Bitil, and they charged. Suddenly, Zirahk was lifted off his feet and into the air. He looked up and found himself being held by a large, beastly being, dangling from a cargo airship. "So long, boys!" said the figure merrily to the Makuta. The being heaved Zirahk onto the cargo ship, then pulled himself up with no effort. Zirahk found himself facing a whole group of gruff, large beings, all looking like they murdered for fun. "Thank you," Zirahk said. "You're a little late, you know. Even for pirates." The being chuckled. "Don't sweat it. We got you in time, didn't we? Now, tell me, where do you want to go?" "Away," Zirahk said. "Far away. As far away as you can take me." The pirate looked at his comrades and smiled. "Bring me that Matoran, Gaardus," he said, then turned to Zirahk. "It's a deal." And now I'm writing from where he took me. And that is where my story began. ---- Bara Magna: a desolate, good for nothing, life-deprived ball of dirt. That is how I've come to know it. The being known as Gaardus brought me here and promptly vanished. No surprise there: from what I can tell as of yet, it is virtually deprived of all life. I say "virtually" because a strange, sand-dwelling thing with a stinger tail attacked me earlier this afternoon. The fight, to say the least, was quick and easy, but the beast itself was quite ferocious. ''But it makes me wonder: If it can survive here, there must be some other form of life on the planet to sustain it. I'll write again when—no, if—I find whatever that life is. ---- I found it. But it doesn't answer my question of how they sustain themselves. I fought a Bone Hunter, as he called himself. The battle, and something he said, were quite interesting... ''A canyon is the best place to be ambushed. And yet Zirahk walked through it, without heed to the dangers he might face. His mind focused on other matters, Zirahk tripped on a stone and fell. He pressed his arms to the ground, intent on getting up, but found himself stopped by a sword to his neck. "Get up slowly!" said a stern voice. Zirahk stood up and looked over his shoulder. A small, black-armored being stood there menacingly. Zirahk shook his head. He didn't have time for this. He shoved his clawed foot into the being's chest--or at least, he tried to. With amazing reflexes, the being had whipped his hand out and grabbed the foot. Shocked at such speed but still nonchalant, he twisted around in the being's grip and used his heat vision to strike him in the helmet. "Agh!" said the being. "You're a power user! You and your--your--Bounty Hunters' Guild keep attacking us Bone Hunters, mining in our territory! Your death will be the first of many!" Zirahk didn't have the slightest idea what he was talking about, but he didn't hesitate. He used his staff to block the blow coming to his head. Then he whipped around and kicked where the Bone Hunter's head should have been. It wasn't there. Zirahk toppled onto his back, and looked up to see a sword flying towards his head. He rolled to one side and just missed the blow, then back again as he dodged another strike. He sent heat at the being's chest, and he fell to the ground. The pair got up simultaneously, as the Bone Hunter's reflexes were outstanding. Zirahk had to hand it to him--what he lacked in power, he made up for with pure skill. They charged each other, sparring with their weapons at lightning speed. But eventually, the Bone Hunter made a fatal error, and Zirahk stabbed him through the heart with his staff. The Hunter's final words were: "I am not the last. Your 'Bounty Hunters' Guild' will be destroyed!" As you can see, it was a very interesting battle. But he kept talking about a "Bounty Hunters' Guild". I have made it my goal to find them. If I could make a life for myself as a bounty hunter, it would be a nice, fresh start. Characters *Zirahk *Antroz *Bitil *Gaardus *A Vorox *A Bone Hunter *Several pirates Trivia *This story was originally created as a Christmas special for The Bounty Hunter Wars. Category:Stories Category:Gigas Magna Storyline